Source:  Ahead of “milk cliff,” McConnell piecing together new farm bill – Political Eye – CBS News.

and would extend at the post-August 2012 level the USDA’s Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) program, which compensates dairy producers when domestic milk prices fall below a specific level.

I’m just a simple guy but I don’t understand how milk would go to $8/gallon if the farm bill is not passed.  Everyone knows that part of this legislation is for the government to buy large quantities of milk and cheese to prevent a glut in the market place. This seems like reverse supply/demand to me?  If we let too much milk come on the market it will result in drastically increased milk prices to consumers?
I have never understood the farm bill.  Like most other business subsidy type legislation, some call it corporate welfare,  it is very complicated.  Farmers are paid for not using their land. The government takes excess product off the market so the price won’t go down.  I don’t know if we are still subsidizing tobacco farmers or not; I hope at least that part has been eliminated. These farms bills just don’t make much sense to me. But then again nothing that happens in Washington makes much sense to me lately.

I did read another article about if the farm subsidy bill is not passed then milk prices will be determined by some 1949 law and then the article went on to try an explain that. I didn’t have a clue as to what they said. Here is an idea why don’t we let farmers figure out what they want to grow and who they sell it to?  Do we really need the government to do that for them. I’m sure farmers appreciated all the extra money coming in from us tax payers but maybe now is the time to start weaning them and other business off the government teets.

We have been subsidizing our farms for longer than I can remember so I imagine it will continue and we will avert the “milk cliff” as well as the “unemployment cliff”, “Medicare cliff”, and the “Worry cliff”.  I kind of get the idea that this “cliff” stuff is way over used and over blown.

But I’m just a simple guy so what do I know….